Cinema

Editor's note: This column includes the last review by the late Roger Ebert — for "To the Wonder." The future of his syndicated service is still undetermined. Richard Roeper will supply some reviews in the interim.

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Posted Apr. 26, 2013 at 12:37 AM

Posted Apr. 26, 2013 at 12:37 AM

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Editor's note: This column includes the last review by the late Roger Ebert — for "To the Wonder." The future of his syndicated service is still undetermined. Richard Roeper will supply some reviews in the interim.

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The Big Wedding: Formulaic comedy ensues when an adopted son asks his divorced parents to pretend they're still together because his biological mother believes divorce is an unforgivable sin. But it feels as if all the guests at "The Big Wedding" are wearing ID tags telling us their one plot point. For such a lighthearted ensemble romp, "The Big Wedding" easily earns its R rating, what with a nude scene and raunchy dialogue that gets pretty nasty at times. Here's a premise that Robert Altman handled much better in "A Wedding." HH — Richard Roeper

Pain and Gain: The mostly true story of three idiot bodybuilders who went on a steroids-fueled, tragicomic crime spree in South Florida in the 1990s, directed by Michael Bay with hard-R, turn-your-head-away violence. Even though the film does mine laughs from real-life tragedy, it refuses to glamorize these meatheads. Kudos to Bay and his screenwriters for making sure we're laughing at them, not with them. HHH — Richard Roeper

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42: Here's a long overdue, serious big-screen biopic about one of the most important American pioneers of the 20th century. But this is more a ground-rule double than a grand slam. From the soundtrack to the speechifying to the subject material to the script's somber tone, "42" has the uniform of an Oscar contender, but it falls short of Hall of Fame status. Jackie Robinson was great; "42" is good. With Chadwick Boseman and Harrison Ford. HHH — Richard Roeper

THE CROODS: The latest DreamWorks animation creation, the studio that brought you the "Shrek" and "Madagascar" franchises. This is the story of the adventures of a prehistoric family. No review available.

Emperor: Set in the immediate aftermath of the war, "Emperor" is a solid and important look at a sometimes-forgotten chapter in the World War II saga. While the embers are still burning through much of Japan, and the nation is on its knees, the defeated Emperor Hirohito remains behind palace doors while Gen. Douglas MacArthur and his team debate his fate. Amid the strategy scenes, this big-picture tale occasionally pauses for a star-crossed romance. As MacArthur, Tommy Lee Jones adds welcome spark to a movie that more than once occasionally gets a little too bogged down in the details. HHH — Richard Roeper

Evil Dead: Not a strict remake of Sam Raimi's hugely influential 1981 horror classic, but it does include the basic framework and some visual nods to the original. On its own, it's an irredeemable, sadistic torture chamber reveling in the bloody, cringe-inducing deaths of some of the stupidest people ever to spend a rainy night in a remote cabin in the woods. I love horror films that truly shock, scare and provoke. But after 30 years of this stuff, I'm bored to death and sick to death of movies that seem to have one goal: How can we gross out the audience by torturing nearly every major character in the movie? H — Richard Roeper

G.I. JOE: RETALIATION: To say "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" is a video game for the big screen is to insult a number of video games that are far more creative, challenging and better-looking. The first installment of this series, "The Rise of Cobra" (2009), at least had a sense of its own absurdity, but the sequel is a heavy-handed, explosion-riddled, ear-piercing disaster with an insanely stupid plot and an endless stream of mostly generic fight sequences that straddle the PG-13 line. H½ — Richard Roeper

Ginger and Rosa: Tells two coming-of-age stories, one political, one emotional. Ginger (Elle Fanning) and Rosa (Alice Englert) grow up in a London weary from shortages of food, living space and cheer. Who could have guessed Swinging London and the Beatles were on the way? Ginger becomes completely swept up in the Ban the Bomb movement and, in her youthful fatalism, becomes convinced the Earth is on the brink of nuclear annihilation. With Alessandro Nivola as Ginger's dad, Christina Hendricks as her mom, Annette Bening as a leftist friend, and Timothy Spall and Oliver Platt as a friendly, avuncular gay couple. Written and directed by Sally Potter ("Yes," "The Tango Lesson"). HHH

The Host: Based on a novel by Stephenie Meyer, author of the "Twilight" saga, "The Host" is about a time in the not-distant future when human minds have been colonized by an alien race called "Souls." Saoirse Ronan stars as a human whose original mind has somehow survived and co-occupies the space with a Soul mind; their conversations can be intriguing ("No, Melanie! Wrong! No! He's from another planet!"). HH½

Jack the Giant Slayer: Surprise! Director Bryan Singer, a first-rate cast and a stellar team of screenwriters, set designers and special-effects wizards have dusted off an old and never particularly compelling fairy tale and have given us a great-looking thrill ride. It's filled with neat touches, from the casting of Ewan McGregor as a knight in shining armor to an epilogue that's just flat-out cool. Even for those who didn't think they'd give a fee, a fi, a fo or a fum about this movie, it's a rousing, original and thoroughly entertaining adventure. HHH½

JURASSIC PARK (3-D): Weren't those dinosaurs scary enough the first time around? Now we're going to have them leaping out at us in the audience? Great. No review available.

OBLIVION: An extremely well-crafted, at times engrossing but ultimately standard-issue futuristic epic with some big ideas and spiritual touches separated by some very loud and explosive chase scenes, high-powered gun battles and even some good old-fashioned hand-to-hand combat involving Tom Cruise. It's the sci-fi movie equivalent of a pretty darn good cover band. You're not getting the real deal, but you're getting a medley of hits performed by some talented artists who clearly have great affection for the original material. HHH — Richard Roeper

OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN: It's probably been long enough since "24" based a whole season on "kidnap the president and hold him/her hostage for an entire season," so here comes the first of two movies this year based on this premise. "White House Down" is the next one in June. No review available.

Oz the Great and Powerful: Like "The Phantom Menace" trilogy, "Oz the Great and Powerful" precedes a beloved classic on the fictional timeline, but makes full use of modern-day technology, which means everything's grander and more spectacular. Director Sam Raimi and his army of special-effects wizards have created a visually stunning film that makes good use of 3-D, at least in the first hour or so. The film finally breaks free of its beautiful but artificial trappings and becomes a story with heart in the final act. HH½ — Richard Roeper

SPRING BREAKERS: Harmony Korine's homage to the annual spring experience is like a pervier cousin of "Girls Gone Wild." On other occasions, though, you feel as if you're experiencing raw, mad, avant-garde genius at work. The film challenges us to think about the hedonistic hell of that annual ritual, as it segues from party film to insane crime story. HHH½ — Richard Roeper

To the Wonder: Scarcely more than a year after his "The Tree of Life," an epic that began with the dinosaurs and peered into an uncertain future, Terrence Malick's "To the Wonder" is a film that contains only a handful of important characters and a few crucial moments in their lives. Although it uses dialogue, it's dreamy and half-heard, and essentially this could be a silent film — silent, except for its mostly melancholy music. HHH½